He doesn't mind the nicknames either

LOS ANGELES -- Kevin Covais figures that his rendition of "When I Fall in Love" on "American Idol" Tuesday was his best performance of the season. And even though the show's viewers didn't agree, he's okay with that.

"I felt I did the best I could on it, and everything seemed right," the 16-year-old from Levittown, N.Y., said Thursday, less than 24 hours after becoming the second of this year's "Idol" finalists to be sent home. "So the fact that I was eliminated is a little bittersweet, but it's nice to go out ... knowing I did the best I could. That's a great feeling."

The youngest of the male finalists by nearly a decade, Kevin was the frequent -- and willing, he says -- subject of jokes about his appearance and his reputed charms with the ladies. Fellow contestant Paris Bennett nicknamed him "Chicken Little" for his resemblance to the Disney movie character, and host Ryan Seacrest made numerous cracks about his sex-symbol status.

"I can tell you, I probably encouraged a lot of that," he says. "That was the producers of the show saying, 'Do you want to try this, are you okay with this?,' and I said to go for it. I want to have a good time, and I'm a sarcastic, fun kid.

"So as far as any of those comments, I wasn't offended in the least. I loved it, and encouraged it. I said, Milk it for all it's worth, because I might as well while I'm here."

After his elimination Wednesday, Kevin and the other finalists had dinner together, where they said their goodbyes and exchanged numbers. The notion of not continuing on the show, though, is taking a little longer to set in.

"The whole vibe is different -- you hear yes, yes, yes, you're through, you're through, and then it's like -- ehh, no," he says. "So it's different, and it's hard. It's like, back to reality -- I'm not flying anymore, I'm back down to the ground. But it's an okay feeling. This is over with, but now a new chapter will begin."

That next chapter will include a return to his high school, rejoining his friends and looking toward college; he says he's interested in studying music and broadcasting. If a singing career comes, that'd be great, he says, but "I'm 16 years old, so I know I've got a lot of time ahead of me."

Whenever he does perform again, though, he's pretty sure it will be a little easier. "Never again will I go on stage and feel a great deal of pressure, and I have 'American Idol' to thank for that," he says. "Performing in front of 35 million people, it really helps get rid of those fears."